Look behind you.....

Screenshot by ZDNet

more Technically Incorrect

• How I learned the hard way about Southwest Airlines' awful technology
• I bought Apple's M2 MacBook Air and now I'm weeping
• I just spent a week with a robot cat and my life will never be the same
• One of America's most hated companies hired a security robot. It didn't go well

Machines will, one day soon, have feelings. They won't necessarily be feelings you appreciate; some of those feelings may involve the machines not appreciating your feelings at all. 

This future world may, therefore, be somewhat disturbing.

Apple's Beats By Dre seems to have an inkling of what's in the air. In a collaboration with menswear brand Union, Beats By Dre offers a chilling scenario in an elevated form of advertising.

The video begins with a view of a garden through a window. A drone appears to be on patrol.

(Perhaps, to you, this is already normal. You need to own a patrolling drone to counter any flying machines that might invade your personal airspace.)

Inside the house is rapper Vince Staples. His dialogue reeks of the surreal. Sample: "So I'm, like, engineer. Let's clarify the spectacular."

We'd all like to do that. If we knew what it meant.

But we're here to talk about the new Union x Beat Studio Buds. So let's get the product sell over with.

"By implementing pi to its root and multiplying x to the third, it elevated the sonics to this level," says a man who could be a dad, a guru, or an engineer on his day off. Or all three.

These are clearly extraordinary buds. Vince, though, needs to muse: "The root of pi is the root of life."

I feel sure you'll want to analyze that for a while, but we have a drama to follow.

A woman enters. Is she a family member? Is she the local soothsayer? Is she another engineer? Is she all three?

She says, "Did you notice anything with Drone?"

I offer a capital D, as Drone appears to be a member of the family, too.

"It's been creepy since you've been obsessed with those headphones."

Dad/guru/engineer doesn't believe a drone could be jealous. He thinks it's just the solstice.

But then Drone appears, and your whole body will shiver with the fright of a thousand lightning flashes. Drone, you see, isn't happy. Not at all. Drone is jealous.

You may continue to be enthralled by the sonics of these allegedly special headphones. I will continue to be concerned about the future of humanity.

Especially given Drone's final words, having jealously, menacingly flown around the living room: "Drone not creepy."

Artists have already offered stirring portents of how the likes of Alexa will infiltrate human decision-making. Do you think this Drone will always be a happy-go-lucky family member?

Or do you sense emotional disaster close at hand?

Naenka Runner Pro bone conduction headset review: in pictures

Drones

The 4 best drones: Which one is right for you?Want a folding dual-camera drone? This one just dropped to$85Drone company gets unlimited commercial approval from FAAThe 5 best surveillance drones: Next-level inspection UAVs

• The 4 best drones: Which one is right for you?
• Want a folding dual-camera drone? This one just dropped to$85
• Drone company gets unlimited commercial approval from FAA
• The 5 best surveillance drones: Next-level inspection UAVs